18TH CENTURY LIVING HISTORY, HISTORICAL TREKKING, AND LONG TERM SURVIVAL.

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18TH CENTURY LIVING HISTORY IN AUSTRALIA.

Tuesday, 3 April 2012

18th Century Historical Trekking. What Do We Get Out Of It.

18th Century Historical Trekking. What Do We Get Out Of It?

Someone asked me recently how did I manage wearing sheepskin moccasins. What happens when I am in swampy ground and they get wet, do I have to turn them inside out to clean them? My answer was that I simply dry them slowly by the fire, and if there is no fire then they stay wet.

So what do I get out of Historical Trekking? I get a feeling of my own worth and abilities. I feel a strong sense of satisfaction knowing that I can cope. This is a feeling of self-reliance and self-sufficiency. Despite the fact that people know that we participate in living history so that we can experience an 18th century lifestyle as it was back then, they still can not get used to the fact that they will not be as comfortable sleeping on a bed of sticks and bracken fern as they would be on a modern camp mattress. Daniel Boone is quoted as saying:

“It was on the first of May, in the year 1769, that I resigned my domestic happiness for a time, and left my family and peaceable habitation on the Yadkin River, in North-Carolina, to wander through the wilderness of America, in quest of the country of Kentucke, in company with John Finley, John Stewart, Joseph Holden, James Monay, and William Cool”.

The keywords here are “resigned my domestic happiness”, that means that Boone knew that his time in the woods, no matter how much he loved it and was contented with it, was not going to have the comforts of home. You have to be as realistic as you can if you wish to experience that 18th century lifestyle. Let us just for a moment place ourselves on the trail in the forest 300 years ago, what are we thinking? What are we doing?

When I go on a historical trek, I am aware of the dangers that existed back then, wild animals and perhaps unfriendly Indians. I walk as quietly as I can, and every now and then I stop and listen. On this particular trek I am working as a Ranger for a community. They have had trouble with raiding Indians and before the militia can muster, the raiding parties have disappeared back into the forest. My job is to look for sign, and if I find sign that there are Indians in the area, then I have to try and get back to the community and warn them.

When I make camp at night I will simply lay on the ground with no shelter unless rain or snow threatens. I may make a bed of fern, but that is all. I will not light a fire for fear of being seen, so I will find a place out of the wind, perhaps a place with natural shelter. My food must be eaten cold, for that purpose I have brought along some cooked meat, cheese and bread. I also have some dried food stuffs in my pack just in case.

I can not tell how long I will be out. This Ranging is a hit and miss venture at best. I could be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and the enemy may slip past me without either of us knowing the other’s presence. But I must try, I must think of the various possibilities regarding where they may be coming from and which trail they make take.

It is Autumn, an Indian summer. The leaves are still on the trees and bushes, enough to give the Indians cover. One last raid before winter? Could be. It is getting chilly at night now, I have been out for a week and my cold rations are gone.Now I eat a little oats in cold water. It tastes good on a cold night. This is comfort, I have a good blanket and dry clothes. I have a spare woollen shirt and weskit rolled up in my blanket that I can put on over my other under clothes and under my frock if I get cold.

Before starting our trek on the Great Lakes.

One time when a friend and I were on the Great Lakes in winter, our boat got swamped by a sudden storm. We were still a good 100 yards from shore, and had to get into the water and swim our boat to shore. The wind still blew a gale, and the rain hammered down. Whilst my friend unloaded the boat as fast as he could to minimise the damage to our supplies, I got a fire going and started to construct a shelter frame. Then we both finished the shelter together, I got my oilcloth over the frame and tied down, and my friend used the boat sail to give us more cover.

We stripped off our wet clothes and hung them over a rope to dry in front of the fire. I had made the fire large, so we could get warm fast and dry our clothes. We sat in our breechclouts, blankets and wool caps passing the port and watching our clothes steam. It was one of the best times I have ever had.

Arthur with his canoe on our first trip to the Great Lakes. After this trip Arthur built two period boats for our trips.

Arthur with the map figuring where to head next. This is a small island we are camped on.

Arthur in his small shelter.

An eagle passes over when we are on the water, good medicine.

Calm as a mill pond.

Myself in another time, another place.

Here I settled for the roots of this fallen tree for a shelter. My hair is not gray yet in this image!

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Settlers.

"I noticed particularly, one family of about 12 in number. The mancarried an axe and a gun on his shoulders. The Wife, the rim of a spinningwheel in one hand, and a loaf of bread in the other. Several little boys andgirls, each with a bundle, according to their size Two poor horses, eachheavily loaded with some poor necessities. On the top of the baggage of one,was an infant rocked to sleep in a kind of wicker cage, lashed securely to thehorse. A cow formed one of the company ,and she was destined to bear herproportion of service - a bed cord was wound around her horns and a bag of mealon her back. They were not only patient, but cheerful and pleased withthemselves with the expectation of seeing happy days beyond the mountains"Diary of Presbyterian Rev. David McClure.18th century.

What is Living History?

What is Living History?Living history makes history come to life. To do this members emulate different sorts of people from history. These can include blacksmiths, seamstresses, housewives, farmers, woodsmen and woodswomen. We wear the clothes of the time and learn and use the life and trade skills of the period.What period of history does the NECLHG re-enact ?Approximately 1680-1760 on the New World Frontier.Why this period of history and why a New World lifestyle and not Australian?The New World was settled much earlier than Australia and enables us to choose from a larger variety of nationalities, occupations and skills. All of these options make the activities more fun.Australian settlement was in a later period and founded on a penal colony. There are other re-enactment groups for people interested in the Australian colonial period.Is joining NECLHG expensive?No. There are no membership fees for the group. The activity is only as expensive as you want it to be! Many members make all their own period style clothing and equipment. This is an ideal activity for people who like to make things and be creative.What if there are some items I can not make myself or I am too busy to make?You always have the option of buying or trading for items. People who want to purchase their clothing and equipment can do so; there are many specialist suppliers. Also you can trade for items you can not make .Can my family join this group?Yes we are very family oriented.What is experimental archaeology?This is the term used when someone makes and uses a period tool or item. This can be anything from lighting a fire with a flint and steel to building and sailing a ship on an original route! It is the only way to really discover how things were done “back then”.What is historical trekking?This activity is trekking and camping in an historically accurate manner. People on a historical trek wear the clothing of the period and carry and use only the equipment used in that period. These treks are a great way to learn woods lore and survival skills.What sort of “period skills” can we learn and practice?You can learn and use any skill that was used in the period you reenact. For the mid-18th century these include spinning and weaving on a loom, finger weaving, tomahawk throwing, fire lighting, blade sharpening, leather making and leather working and much, much more.Is the NECLHG a gun club?No. Some on our members may carry a period gun on treks and camps as part of their persona. These guns are flintlock muzzle-loading antique guns or copies. The highest level of safely is maintained at all times. Guns are not carried loaded and all gun carrying members are licensed.What about women members?In the 18th century women performed many traditional and non traditional roles. There were women blacksmiths, naturalists, artists, and woods-women. Some accompanied militia on scouts . In the NECLHG a women can be what ever she wants to be!What about children.?Children are always welcome. Naturally children are the responsibility of their parents. Children really enjoy the living history activities and skills. It is a wonderful way to learn history and it makes their school based history a lot more meaningful. Also children can learn bush craft, survival skills and camping skills.